Tuesday, 20 January 2015

Five days, yes, that is the
number of days that it took for Gucci to design and produce their Fall winter
2015 menswear runway show, a record in itself. Frida Giannini, the outgoing
creative director, left the Florentin brand, a month earlier than expected, thus
creating a big question mark over the menswear show. But hats off to the group
effort of the design team, the brand was able to pull off the show beyond expectation.
No wonder, at the end of the show, head accessories designer Alessandro Michele
along with his team of designers took a collective bow.

The post Giannini effect was
clearly visible in the clothes. Gender blurring is the big name in the fashion
world now. Androgynous and French- in a colour story of red, white and blue-
the collection was a celebration of a new found identity of the brand. The show
notes declared the offering as contemporary non-conformist. The idea was of
self expression without any inhibition or barrier.

Red blouse with pussy bow, shirts
with peter- pan collar, high waited loose trousers, lace top and mink lined sandals
were some of the pieces of the collection, something that we have never seen
before under Giannini’s creative direction. Other key pieces of the collection
were a red duffel coat and short sleeved military jackets. Berets, spectacles
and knit caps were reminiscent of the school days. A red lace top will not be
appealing to most of the men, nor has a commercial value; however the newness
in the design philosophy of the brand was evident.The change of the guard can
be explicitly seen. Is the change good? Well for that we have to wait and
watch.